Scott Sassa Joins Robert Rodriguez’s El Rey Network

Exec forced out at Hearst Corp. by sexting scandal to be vice chairman of nascent cable channel

Two months after he was bounced out of Hearst Corp. amid a sexting scandal, Scott Sassa has surfaced in a new role as vice chairman of Robert Rodriguez’s nascent cable channel.

With Sassa on board, Antoinette Alfonso Zel shifts from the role of CEO to chief marketing officer for El Rey Network, set to launch in December with backing from Comcast. Zel was tapped as chief exec last year after Rodriguez and John Fogelman’s FactoryMade Ventures secured carriage commitment from Comcast.

“Scott is a dynamic, seasoned leader in television who has produced results at every stop he’s made, and he’s an innovator who understands the digital future,” Rodriguez said. “We are thrilled to bring him on board to make the El Rey Network what we’ve always envisioned it to be.”

Sassa had spent the past four years as prexy of Hearst Entertainment and Syndication. He resigned abruptly in mid-March after top brass at Hearst Corp. received emails indicating that he was entangled in an extortion plot involving a stripper. Sassa is a TV vet, having held top exec posts at Fox, NBC and Turner before landing at Hearst in late 2008.